S-(+)-abscisic acid (ABA) is a plant hormone that is found in all photosynthetic organisms (Arteca, R., 1996,Plant Growth Substances: Principles and Applications. New York: Chapman & Hall). ABA is involved in many major events of plant growth and development including dormancy, germination, bud break, flowering, fruit set, general growth and development, stress tolerance, ripening, abscission, and senescence. One of the roles of ABA is the regulation of water relations in plants through the control of stomata opening and closure. Based on its effects on stress reduction, ABA is being developed for use on ornamental and crop plants.
The rapid metabolism and loss of ABA may be a limiting factor for its development as a commercial plant growth regulator. Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to increase the effectiveness of ABA in the protection of plants from stress.
It is an object of this invention to increase the resistance of plants to stress with the application of piperonyl butoxide (PBO).
It is an object of this invention to increase the resistance of plants to stress with the application of combinations of ABA and PBO.
It is a further object of the present invention to protect plants from drought stress.